The country/world as a whole is more divisive. My view is that I go to the pub to relax and have a good time, I don’t want politics in my face.
Also, there can’t be any public figure in the country who looks more like a nonce than Martin.
I thought the Independent had done a weird thing where they tried to make him look like a Thatcher hybrid person, but now I think it’s just his real hair
> If you’re British and of legal drinking age, the chances are that you have strong feelings, one way or another, about Wetherspoons.
Only if you think going to the pub is some kind of political gesture. Most people go to the pub to meet friends, socialise, and enjoy themselves.
As businesses go, I find it a curate’s egg.
I really like how they refurbed places and gave them local identities (ours is named after an obscure Admiral). I also liked their work on getting the smoking ban in pubs over the line, seeing off the tobacco lobbyists like the IEA.
But of course there is The Other Business. Last couple of times we’ve been to our ‘spoons it’s been undermanned and the few poor sods who are working there are running around like blue arsed flies. It’s almost as if someone told the staff to “fuck off back to your own country” and didn’t think about the business consequences.
My wife’s best mate refuses to step inside one. It’s because of the prices. She’d rather spend her high wages on more expensive things. Don’t understand that mentality!
Wetherspoons has its ups and its downs but the outrage is selective and clearly some punching down on the working class for whatever reason.
You’ll see people shit on wetherspoons and its customers while using Amazon without any complaints.
In the real world wetherspoons and even it’s owner are no where near the top of the list of bad guys in business today.
People need to start having some perspective.
Who killed Debenhams?
How often are online shops involved in the slave trade?
Who profits when there is a disaster?
I wish wetherspoons was the worst company we had.
Love a Weatherspoons, cheap and cheerful. The food isn’t too bad either.
Tim Martin is absolute prick. Although I don’t blame people for going in his pubs. They are cheap and some of the buildings are lovely. Feel sorry for the other pubs that struggle to compete and many Wetherspoons lack any sort of atmosphere; they remind me of motorway services.
I love spoons, I’m usually in there once a week at least.
A taxpayer with an opinion who runs a private business where we all have a choice whether to be a customer or not. With Wetherspoons you can take it or leave it. We should be far more concerned with the 2 party system we have, which gives us limited choices on who represents and governs us. Both the Tories and Labour are dead parties, we need massive electoral reform.
Most people in this country don’t sleep and breathe politics so that puts that argument to rest. They are not loaded so £3.35 a pint or so for decent beer is better that £5 for some fizzy pasteurised pop. The pubs do what they say on the tin, and do it well IMO, so no pretence about being a gastropub. Is Tim Martin a Brexiteering sod? Yes he is. Does that stop me going into his pubs? No, because I don’t have that patronising view of the working class that a lot do but would deny.
This article is bullshit. Spoons isnt that divisive and the only people I’ve heard ever of avoiding it due to its owners politics are on Reddit.
You go there for cheap drinks and food that is exactly what youd expect for the price. The fact it maintains the decor of so many interesting old buildings is a great side effect.
I used to go quite often to spoons, when I was younger. It was cheap and had an alright pint selection.
Now the food is overpriced for the quality and the pint selection is gash.
Now I just go to my local.
I tend to avoid them because there are much nicer freehouse/independent pubs near me, and I’m lucky enough that I can afford it (even though the difference in quality is worth it imo). I can’t help but feel Wetherspoons’ business model is the same as most other large chains: undercut local places, run them out of business, open up more places to build market share, then avoid as much tax as possible.
I don’t have an issue with Wetherspoons, but the owner is a bit of a bellend
It does offer it’s workers some form of career progression and it did break the big 6 tie. That being said Wetherspoon is a dick and the pubs are kinda disgusting.
I don’t go because every single independent pub landlord I’ve spoken to in my area says they’re the primary cause of the death of the pub industry.
Every single one.
I’m no expert on it – I get why people go. But you won’t find me in one.
last summer i came back to the visit the uk and went to the pub with me mate. Real ale pub (about a fiver a pint which is fine for me even though i’m poor – i’m on holiday) with loads of different beers – had one pint, mid week, very quiet. then the server said they were closing because not enough customers so had to go to the only other place open, spoons and had a couple in there. yes it’s like having a pint in a greasy spoon or cheap hotel lounge but only place open. and cheap
I don’t understand the hate for Wetherspoons. The prices are way lower than most other pubs, there’s always a good selection of real ales, you can order via an app from your seat, the food is of a decent enough quality, and there’s no loud music blaring. The only downside is that the owner is a knob.
It’s the fast food of pubs. I’d rather go literally anywhere else, but it’s cheap. I feel similar about other chain pubs.
People who go out drinking don’t give a shit about the politics of a pub
By all means put me right if this isn’t very accurate, but it seems to me Wetherspoons has given a new lease of life to a hell of a lot of interesting and/or historic buildings which might have been knocked down otherwise.
In all my pub moaning sessions, Wetherspoons has never come up in arguments among friends. More selective outrage. Another pint of £2 ale please Tim.
I don’t go to Spoons for a few reasons, one being politics.
The other reason is they’re killing the pub industry. More pubs are closing because they can’t compete with them.
It’s only divisive if you’re a posh snob addicted to Twitter
Very unrelated note but I feel like the only person in the country who has noticed that neither the company nor the pubs are actually called Wetherspoons but are always branded and registered as Wetherspoon. Similar thing with Tesco, think we all just love to add unnecessary s’s to things.
Morally, I disagree with it and think it’s emblematic of all the most embarrassing parts of being British. Economically, it’s attractive…
A friend of mine has been a manager of a cavernous Greater Manchester Spoons for several years. Few interesting tidbits I’ve learned:
They don’t buy cheap beer because it’s close to it’s sell-by date, that’s an urban legend. They pay about £1 per pint like every other pub
That Brexit-supporting bloke is “alright” and yes he always wears jeans like the Clarkson wannabe he is. He floats around the nations spoons all day doing incognito visits
Their chip portions are mandated by the nanny state, its to do with sticking to the stated number of calories
The staff agree that it’s f**king ridiculous to serve until midnight then chuck people out at ten-past
Spoons is a national treasure and part of British culture, it’s not very divisive at all, the vast majority of people enjoy the place on occasion.
You’re always going to get the odd miserable arse but most pub enjoyers are tolerant of differing opinions and can bond over a mutual love of fried foods, £2.55 ales and unlimited coffee.
32 comments
My most successful piece of low stakes, armchair activism is that I haven’t been in a Wetherspoons since 2016.
It’s amazon to me.
Fundamentally is a morally void faceless enterprise fueling a super rich nutcase.
On the other hand, it’s cheap passable shit; and my morals are shallow. I respect anyone who doesn’t go though.
I wonder if all of [these](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endorsements_in_the_2016_United_Kingdom_European_Union_membership_referendum#Business_leaders) and [these](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endorsements_in_the_2016_United_Kingdom_European_Union_membership_referendum#Businesses) are also considered “divisive”, or is it just the one side of the referendum where publicly supporting it makes you “divisive”?
The country/world as a whole is more divisive. My view is that I go to the pub to relax and have a good time, I don’t want politics in my face.
Also, there can’t be any public figure in the country who looks more like a nonce than Martin.
I thought the Independent had done a weird thing where they tried to make him look like a Thatcher hybrid person, but now I think it’s just his real hair
> If you’re British and of legal drinking age, the chances are that you have strong feelings, one way or another, about Wetherspoons.
Only if you think going to the pub is some kind of political gesture. Most people go to the pub to meet friends, socialise, and enjoy themselves.
As businesses go, I find it a curate’s egg.
I really like how they refurbed places and gave them local identities (ours is named after an obscure Admiral). I also liked their work on getting the smoking ban in pubs over the line, seeing off the tobacco lobbyists like the IEA.
But of course there is The Other Business. Last couple of times we’ve been to our ‘spoons it’s been undermanned and the few poor sods who are working there are running around like blue arsed flies. It’s almost as if someone told the staff to “fuck off back to your own country” and didn’t think about the business consequences.
My wife’s best mate refuses to step inside one. It’s because of the prices. She’d rather spend her high wages on more expensive things. Don’t understand that mentality!
Wetherspoons has its ups and its downs but the outrage is selective and clearly some punching down on the working class for whatever reason.
You’ll see people shit on wetherspoons and its customers while using Amazon without any complaints.
In the real world wetherspoons and even it’s owner are no where near the top of the list of bad guys in business today.
People need to start having some perspective.
Who killed Debenhams?
How often are online shops involved in the slave trade?
Who profits when there is a disaster?
I wish wetherspoons was the worst company we had.
Love a Weatherspoons, cheap and cheerful. The food isn’t too bad either.
Tim Martin is absolute prick. Although I don’t blame people for going in his pubs. They are cheap and some of the buildings are lovely. Feel sorry for the other pubs that struggle to compete and many Wetherspoons lack any sort of atmosphere; they remind me of motorway services.
I love spoons, I’m usually in there once a week at least.
A taxpayer with an opinion who runs a private business where we all have a choice whether to be a customer or not. With Wetherspoons you can take it or leave it. We should be far more concerned with the 2 party system we have, which gives us limited choices on who represents and governs us. Both the Tories and Labour are dead parties, we need massive electoral reform.
Most people in this country don’t sleep and breathe politics so that puts that argument to rest. They are not loaded so £3.35 a pint or so for decent beer is better that £5 for some fizzy pasteurised pop. The pubs do what they say on the tin, and do it well IMO, so no pretence about being a gastropub. Is Tim Martin a Brexiteering sod? Yes he is. Does that stop me going into his pubs? No, because I don’t have that patronising view of the working class that a lot do but would deny.
This article is bullshit. Spoons isnt that divisive and the only people I’ve heard ever of avoiding it due to its owners politics are on Reddit.
You go there for cheap drinks and food that is exactly what youd expect for the price. The fact it maintains the decor of so many interesting old buildings is a great side effect.
I used to go quite often to spoons, when I was younger. It was cheap and had an alright pint selection.
Now the food is overpriced for the quality and the pint selection is gash.
Now I just go to my local.
I tend to avoid them because there are much nicer freehouse/independent pubs near me, and I’m lucky enough that I can afford it (even though the difference in quality is worth it imo). I can’t help but feel Wetherspoons’ business model is the same as most other large chains: undercut local places, run them out of business, open up more places to build market share, then avoid as much tax as possible.
I don’t have an issue with Wetherspoons, but the owner is a bit of a bellend
It does offer it’s workers some form of career progression and it did break the big 6 tie. That being said Wetherspoon is a dick and the pubs are kinda disgusting.
I don’t go because every single independent pub landlord I’ve spoken to in my area says they’re the primary cause of the death of the pub industry.
Every single one.
I’m no expert on it – I get why people go. But you won’t find me in one.
last summer i came back to the visit the uk and went to the pub with me mate. Real ale pub (about a fiver a pint which is fine for me even though i’m poor – i’m on holiday) with loads of different beers – had one pint, mid week, very quiet. then the server said they were closing because not enough customers so had to go to the only other place open, spoons and had a couple in there. yes it’s like having a pint in a greasy spoon or cheap hotel lounge but only place open. and cheap
I don’t understand the hate for Wetherspoons. The prices are way lower than most other pubs, there’s always a good selection of real ales, you can order via an app from your seat, the food is of a decent enough quality, and there’s no loud music blaring. The only downside is that the owner is a knob.
It’s the fast food of pubs. I’d rather go literally anywhere else, but it’s cheap. I feel similar about other chain pubs.
People who go out drinking don’t give a shit about the politics of a pub
By all means put me right if this isn’t very accurate, but it seems to me Wetherspoons has given a new lease of life to a hell of a lot of interesting and/or historic buildings which might have been knocked down otherwise.
In all my pub moaning sessions, Wetherspoons has never come up in arguments among friends. More selective outrage. Another pint of £2 ale please Tim.
I don’t go to Spoons for a few reasons, one being politics.
The other reason is they’re killing the pub industry. More pubs are closing because they can’t compete with them.
It’s only divisive if you’re a posh snob addicted to Twitter
Very unrelated note but I feel like the only person in the country who has noticed that neither the company nor the pubs are actually called Wetherspoons but are always branded and registered as Wetherspoon. Similar thing with Tesco, think we all just love to add unnecessary s’s to things.
Morally, I disagree with it and think it’s emblematic of all the most embarrassing parts of being British. Economically, it’s attractive…
A friend of mine has been a manager of a cavernous Greater Manchester Spoons for several years. Few interesting tidbits I’ve learned:
They don’t buy cheap beer because it’s close to it’s sell-by date, that’s an urban legend. They pay about £1 per pint like every other pub
That Brexit-supporting bloke is “alright” and yes he always wears jeans like the Clarkson wannabe he is. He floats around the nations spoons all day doing incognito visits
Their chip portions are mandated by the nanny state, its to do with sticking to the stated number of calories
The staff agree that it’s f**king ridiculous to serve until midnight then chuck people out at ten-past
Spoons is a national treasure and part of British culture, it’s not very divisive at all, the vast majority of people enjoy the place on occasion.
You’re always going to get the odd miserable arse but most pub enjoyers are tolerant of differing opinions and can bond over a mutual love of fried foods, £2.55 ales and unlimited coffee.